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Grammar
Objective: Construct real-conditional sentences with si plus présent and futur simple, and recognise that the futur simple never appears after si.
| Order | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| condition first | Si tu viens, je serai content. | If you come, I will be happy. |
| result first | Je serai content si tu viens. | I will be happy if you come. |
| condition with a state | S'il fait beau, nous irons au parc. | If the weather is nice, we will go to the park. |
| condition with an event | Si elle arrive tôt, nous mangerons ensemble. | If she arrives early, we will eat together. |
| condition with a repeated action | Si tu travailles régulièrement, tu réussiras. | If you work regularly, you will succeed. |
The si clause never takes the future tense. The present ai carries the future meaning inside the condition.
When the si clause uses the present tense, the result clause takes the futur simple, not the conditional. The conditional belongs to the imaginary structure with an imparfait condition.
The si clause uses the present viens for a future condition, and the result clause uses the future serai.
Si elides to s' before the vowel-initial il. The result clause uses the future irons.
The condition clause uses the present arrive for an event that has not yet happened. The result clause uses the future mangerons.
When the result clause comes first, no comma appears before si. The condition uses the present ai, and the result uses the future viendrai.
The condition expresses a general pattern in the present, and the result uses the future réussiras.
7 exercises · about 11 minutes
Si elides to s' before the vowel-initial il. The elision is mandatory in writing and in speech.
The si clause uses the present tense to express a real condition, even though the outcome is in the future.
Both clauses refer to a future event. The condition stays in the present, and the result uses the future arriverons.
A scientific general truth uses the present in both clauses, since the outcome is a permanent fact rather than a specific future event.
The negative condition uses the present manges with ne... pas, and the result uses the future auras.